It is certainly possible to accidentally commit a crime. At the same time, ignorance is often not accepted as an excuse for criminal activity. For example, simply explaining to a police officer that you didn't know that what you were doing was illegal will not necessarily get them to refrain from arresting you.
It is simply a responsibility that people have to understand the laws within the country or the state, and actions are still illegal even without intent. One example of this is if you purchased legal recreational marijuana products. This is something that you can certainly do in California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan and many other states.
However, even if you legally purchased those products, you are not allowed to transport them across state lines. For one thing, if recreational products are not legal in the other state, then you are violating that state's drug laws. Secondly, since marijuana is still federally illegal, crossing a state line can turn it into a federal crime.
What if the other state also allows legal marijuana?
One of the stranger parts of the law is that you are actually not allowed to bring marijuana from a state where it is legal into another state where it is also legal. This is due to the federal restriction, as noted above. You may not be breaking state laws in either jurisdiction, but it is still federally illegal because you crossed that state boundary.
In any case, changing laws like this can cause a lot of confusion, and people sometimes find themselves facing charges they never expected. It's very important to understand all of your legal defense options.
Comments
There are no comments for this post. Be the first and Add your Comment below.
Leave a Comment